I got here through a Google search of “Hungry on Keto” I read in the forums people who are hungry being advised to eat fat to satiety but I’m using Carb Manager app to track my net carbs and it’s telling me I’m going over my fat limit - do I not need to track my fat intake?
Thanks in advance for any advice
Fat to satiety - can you really do this?
Lizziebeth
#1
Shortstuff
(Allie)
#2
Depends on the person and how long they’ve been keto. In the early days everyone needs loads of fat to help their body learn how to use it as fuel, but for many the appetite diminishes following adapatation so they naturally eat less and this is where the saying of using fat as a lever comes in.
If you’re in the early stages then more fat can help so best to eat as much as your body wants, then adjust from there if needed.
Brunneria
#4
It really boils down to what works for you.
Are you in ketosis?
If you are, while eating your current macros, then that is fine. It is working for you, and no need to tweak. If you aren’t, then there are various ways of handling things; each of the 3 macros can be adjusted up and down to suit you personally.
If you are still hungry on that, then that is a short way to wreck the whole journey, but you can choose what you eat, and how much. It is definitely easiest to just add fat, but you may find increasing fat AND protein is even more satisfying.
Turns out I do better with v v low carb, less protein than some, and more fat than some people need.
I got mind bogglingly tired of counting everything (some people LOVE it).
But it works for me.
Just find out what works for you…
Ilana_Rose
(mole person)
#6
What @Shortstuff said. Although a lot of people get immediate losses on a ketogenic diet, in reality the first several weeks should generally be devoted to aiding the change that your body is going through in turning from a glucose burning machine to a fat burning one. Until that transition is complete, one can still be very hungry and it’s fine to eat fat to satiety.
You should find, as the weeks go by, that your hunger levels will decrease naturally and that’s where the weight loss begins for most. Don’t worry so much about how much fat you are eating for the first 6 weeks or so, but also don’t be terribly surprised if you don’t have much weight loss in that period. The magic of keto really kicks in once your body is easily metabolizing fat for energy and is as happy to get that fat off your body as off your plate.
In fact, let me state it more forcefully. It’s actually important NOT to be hungry. You don’t want your body to think it’s being deprived and start to slow down metabolic processes. That’s how all other diets work and they always eventually fail because almost no one can stand being hungry long term.
The ketogenic diet works with your body’s natural hormonal signaling rather than against it.
Give your body the time to make this transition as easily as possible. Feed any real hunger. Just absolutely keep your carbs below 20 g. You will never become a fat burner unless your body must use fat for energy and transition to a different metabolic state. After a lifetime of glucose metabolism, this initial transition takes time, but once it’s done you will have given your body the gift of metabolic flexibility that almost everyone in our society is deprived of on the Standard American Diet.
At the same time, this is obviously not an excuse to eat when you aren’t hungry. Listen to your body. Ask if you are really hungry each time before you eat. You will find your signals will change during this adaptive period. You may find soon that you don’t need as many snacks in the day. Eventually you may feel you can drop a meal.
The weight losses on a ketogenic diet come from keeping the hormone insulin low, which in turn allows your fat stores to be released for energy use.
There are two ways to do this, both of which should be used if you are trying to lose weight on a ketogenic diet. The first is keeping carbohydrates extremely low (carbs produce the most insulin of the three macros), and protein moderate. Fat produces the smallest insulin spikes. But the second, is just as important and that’s meal timing. You want to eventually drop snacking entirely and give your body longer stretches in the day where your insulin can drop all the way to it’s baseline. That’s how your fat reserves will get tapped the fastest.
However, I’ve only written the above for the sake of completeness. If you are in the early weeks, just eat fat to satiety. The rest comes VERY naturally to most as hunger signalling drops once the body is metabolizing fat more easily.
Good luck on your journey.
Alex99
#7
Yes and no.
In the first month, I’d say no, my feeling of satiety was all over the place … I needed my iPhone to tell me, yeah that’s how much …
But in about week 5 or 6 I found myself saying, “do I really have to eat all that food” … “I just can’t eat anymore” - I had a strong urge to stop. So yippee - satiety signals works again.
I still track because I’m a numbery, computery sorta guy …
jennytoy1
(Jenny)
#8
I think if you’re new and hungry, its definitely ok to go over your fat goal.
I’m not familiar with that app, but maybe use the keto calculator to confirm your numbers.
also, please dont worry about "metabbolic slowdown ", this is not going to happen within a few weeks and wont happen on a keto diet. it’s ok to be a little hungry. But if you want to eat, you can. Metabolic slowdown would happen on a long term, low calorie “biggest loser” type diet that includes more carbs.
Ilana_Rose
(mole person)
#9
Actually, I completely agree with that. It’s fine to be a little hungry sometimes. What you don’t want is to be very hungry and forcing yourself not to eat just “because macros” and you also don’t want to be perpetually unsatisfied “because calorie restriction”. When I started keto I actually put up with a bit of hunger in those first weeks and nothing bad happened. The hunger just eventually fell away as I became fat adapted. However, many people feel that there are enough changes and challenges going on at the beginning of keto and don’t want to add “hungry” to that mix, and really it’s not necessary as long as you accept that initial weight loss may be reduced.